The theory of continental drift was presented by Alfred Wegener, the German meteorologist. This theory states that the continents of our earth are moving slowly either apart from one another, or toward one another, or in tranverse direction. This theory also proposes that Earth's continents were once connected in a single supercontinent, which later broke apart and drifted to their current positions. This idea was first introduced by Alfred Wegener, a German meteorologist and geophysicist, in the early 20th century.

Evidence of continental movement

Wegener presented his theory in 1912 in a book titled "The Origin of Continents and Oceans." The main points of the theory are as follows:

Pangaea: Wegener suggested that about 300 million years ago, all the continents were joined together in a supercontinent called Pangaea. He believed that Pangaea began breaking apart around 200 million years ago.

Continental Drift: According to Wegener, the continents didn't always occupy their current positions. Instead, they drifted over time. He proposed that the continents moved through the oceanic crust, a process he called "continental drift."

Evidence: Wegener supported his theory with various lines of evidence. One key piece was the apparent fit of the continents, especially along their coastlines. He also pointed to similarities in rock formations, fossils, and ancient climates between continents that are now separated by oceans.

Fossil Evidence: Wegener argued that similar fossils of plants and animals were found on continents that are now separated by vast oceans, suggesting that these organisms lived in the same geographic area when the continents were connected.

Paleoclimatic Evidence: Wegener used evidence of past climates, such as glacial deposits and coal beds, to show that continents had once been in different positions.

Despite the compelling evidence, Wegener's theory faced skepticism and criticism from the scientific community, primarily because he couldn't provide a satisfactory mechanism to explain how continents could move through the solid oceanic crust. It wasn't until the mid-20th century that the theory gained widespread acceptance with the development of the theory of plate tectonics.

Plate tectonics is now the accepted explanation for the movement of Earth's lithospheric plates, providing a mechanism for continental drift. It explains how the Earth's lithosphere is divided into rigid plates that float on the semi-fluid asthenosphere beneath them. These plates can move and interact with each other, leading to various geological phenomena such as earthquakes, volcanic activity, and the gradual shifting of continents over time.